Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD Decreases Stake in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD cut its stake in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM - Free Report) by 4.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 15,346,858 shares of the company's stock after selling 657,891 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD owned 0.99% of Philip Morris International worth $1,846,995,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Meridian Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in Philip Morris International by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. Meridian Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,781 shares of the company's stock worth $214,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the period. NewSquare Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 53.7% in the fourth quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 206 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV lifted its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 3,628 shares of the company's stock worth $437,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the period. Balboa Wealth Partners lifted its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Balboa Wealth Partners now owns 3,712 shares of the company's stock worth $447,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the period. Finally, Cravens & Co Advisors LLC boosted its position in Philip Morris International by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Cravens & Co Advisors LLC now owns 10,052 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,210,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.63% of the company's stock.

Philip Morris International Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of Philip Morris International stock opened at $163.95 on Wednesday. Philip Morris International Inc. has a twelve month low of $93.84 and a twelve month high of $166.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $255.19 billion, a PE ratio of 36.35, a P/E/G ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.46. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $154.34 and its 200 day moving average price is $136.65.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.49 by $0.06. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 120.08% and a net margin of 7.89%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 20th were given a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.29%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 20th. Philip Morris International's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 119.73%.

Insider Transactions at Philip Morris International

In related news, insider Lars Dahlgren sold 3,679 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.96, for a total value of $562,739.84. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 26,828 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,103,610.88. This trade represents a 12.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Yann Guerin sold 2,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $151.28, for a total value of $378,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 30,308 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,584,994.24. The trade was a 7.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 131,822 shares of company stock valued at $19,655,585. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have commented on PM. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Philip Morris International from $160.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on Philip Morris International in a report on Thursday, January 16th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $140.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Argus raised Philip Morris International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Philip Morris International currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $150.78.

Philip Morris International Company Profile

Philip Morris International Inc operates as a tobacco company working to delivers a smoke-free future and evolving portfolio for the long-term to include products outside of the tobacco and nicotine sector. The company's product portfolio primarily consists of cigarettes and smoke-free products, including heat-not-burn, vapor, and oral nicotine products primarily under the IQOS and ZYN brands; and consumer accessories, such as lighters and matches.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.